It was a switch in positions they seemed to relish. For years, these manual scavengers had spent much of their days, looking up at the world through a small hole, standing neck-deep in liquid waste. They were looking down now, for a change, as ‘Bandicoot’, the semi-automatic robot that would do their work, scooped up a pile of waste and dumped it into a collecting vessel.
It was the official launch of ‘Bandicoot’, at the Jala Bhavan in the capital. Present on the occasion were Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, the Water Resources Minister Mathew T.Thomas and others. Also present was Satheesh Nair, who has been working as a manual scavenger for the past two decades, along with his family, who were busy clicking selfies with him and the robot.
It was a photograph of him, with waste almost touching the nose, which appeared in a local daily, that prompted the Chief Minister to talk to the officials concerned to find a way to end the practice. At a summit meeting of startups last year, the Secretary of Information Technology talked to the young innovators on the need for ideas in this regard. The team at Genrobotics soon got down to work, developing a prototype in a few months. According to A.Shainamol, Managing Director, Kerala Water Authority (KWA), funds were an issue for them. Seeing the possibilities of the prototype, the Kerala Start-up granted seed funds of ₹10 lakh.
The Kerala Water Authority Innovation Zone (KWIZ) was launched in January to promote innovation that would be beneficial to the department and the public at large. Genrobotics was officially inducted as the first startup under it. With the upcoming Attukal Pongala in the city as the deadline, the team soon got down to work.
“We spent a few weeks studying manual scavenging in various cities. It was the direct experience of watching these people carry out this thankless job that made us to work on this through sleepless nights. This fully functional model was developed within two months of the initial prototype,” says Vimal Govind, CEO and chief product architect of the robot.
The existing manual scavengers will not lose their jobs with the arrival of the ‘Bandicoot’, as they are being trained to use it. The user interface has been simplified, according to their needs, say the developers.
The Chief Minister lauded the youngsters for their social commitment and innovation.
“The first image that comes to our mind when we think of manual scavengers is that of Noushad, who lost his life trying to save a migrant worker from getting chocked inside a manhole. This innovation by a group of youngsters is putting an end to an inhuman practice. Their biggest capital is their social commitment. It is a model for the country to follow,” he said.
